Slide for shade cloths used in tobacco growing



April m 1950 E. H. WADE 5%9700 SLIDE FOR SHADE CLOTHS USED IN TOBACCO GROWING Filed May 17, 1949' IN VEN TOR..

AYTOE/VEYS Patented Apr. 25, 1950 UNITED SLIDE FOR SHADE CLOTHS USED IN TOBACCO GROWING Edward Hodges Wade, Tampa, Fla. Application May 17, 1949, Serial No. 93,670

(Cl. lifi-28) 4 Claims. 1

The present invention relates to a device for facilitating the sliding movementI of a web of cloth or the like over a horizontal strand such as a wire. The invention is more particularly concerned with a device for facilitating the movement of shade cloths which are used in tobacco growing over the horizontal wires which support the cloths.

Certain types of tobacco are not grown in direct sunlight. These types of tobacco are known as shade grown. The shade is produced by providing a cloth canopy over the plants. It is custernary to set posts in the field spaced at distances of either 16 feet or 32 feet in each direction. Wires are strung on the lines of posts which extend across the field. The wires are smooth, usually have a diameter of approximately d: inch and are customarily secured to the posts approximately 8 feet above the ground. These wires are used to support the shade cloths. The shade cloths are customarily either 200 inches or 400 inches wide. Their length may vary considerably but lengths of 300 to 500 feet are common. The cloths are pulled over the wires and the side edges are joined by stitching to provide a more or less continuous canopy or cover over the entire plot which is planted with the type of tobacco here under consideration.

The shade cloths are ordinarily of a rather flimsy weave but their great width makes them quite heavy per unit of length. The side edges of the cloths are usually pushed toward each other while the cloths are being pulled over the supporting wires. Considerable effort is required to pull the cloths over the wires because of the fact that the wires are of relatively small diameter and they tend to create folds in the cloths with the result that there is considerable resistance to movement of the cloths over the wires. The forceful pulling of the cloths over the wires causes Wear of the cloths and thus reduces their useful life. Many of the same problems are involved in removing the cloths after the growing season.

The primary object of my invention is to provide a simple and inexpensive device which will facilitate the sliding movement of Webs such as shade cloths over horizontal strands such as shade cloth supporting wires. A further object of the invention is to provide a device for this purpose which can be easily and quickly positioned on and removed from a wire and which will not be unintentionally removed from the Wire during use.

Further objects and advantages of the invention are referred to in the following detailed description of an exemplary form of my invention. This description has reference to the accompanying drawing wherein:

Fig. l is a perspective view showing my device in use and illustrating by dotted lines a shade cloth being pulled over a supporting Wire;

Fig. 2 is an end elevation View of the device; and

Fig. '3 is a side elevation View of the device.

An elongated generally tubular body member 4 has a wall which terminates at 5 and E to provide a slot which extends longitudinally of the body member. The body member is thus in the form of a loop which is open at its lower edge as is best illustrated in Fig. 2. The body member 4 is intended to be positioned over and along a strand or wire 1 which is strong on posts 8 and 9.

An arm I is Welded, riveted, or otherwise secured at II to the body member 4 adjacent the slot in the body member. The arm I extends downwardly from the body member for a considerable distance but its length should be such that it does not extend to the ground. The purpose of suspending the arm I I) from the body member is to permit it to act as a weight which prevents rotation of the body member about the wire 'I and consequently prevents unintentional displacement of the device from the wire during use. The weight of the arm IIJ may be sufficient for this purpose but I consider it advisable to secure an additional Weight I2 to the lower end of the arm.

The outer surface of the body member 4 should be as smooth as possible. I provide a stop member at each end of the body member to prevent the cloth from passing beyond the ends of the body member. The stop members are designated as the reference numerals I3 and I4. They are welded or otherwise secured to the body member and they curve upwardly and outwardly from the upper surface of the body member. The ends of the stop members which are secured to the body members should taper in thickness and these members should be contoured so that no sharp corners or edges are presented.

A shade cloth I5 is illustrated by dotted lines in Fig. 1 of the drawing and it is believed that the manner in which the device is used will be apparent from that gure. The side edges of the shade cloth I5 are pushed toward each other and one end of the shade cloth is passed over the upper surface lof the body member 4 and between the stop members I3 and I4. The radius of curvature of body member 4 is many times that of the wire 'l and the smooth outer surface of the body member presents much less friction and resistance to movement of the shade cloth than would be the case if the cloth were forcefully pulled over the wire. The stop members I3 and I4 prevent the edges of the shade cloth from passing off the ends of the body member onto the wire. The arm Il] and the weight l2 prevent the body member from excessive rotation -about the wire so the device remains on the wire during use.

The device can be easily removed from any particular wire after it has served its purpose on that wire by merely grasping the arm il) and lifting the device vertically so that the wire 1 passes through the slot in the body member. The device can then be transferred to another wire and the procedure repeated.

My device greatly reduces the time and eiort required to pull shade cloths into position over a tobacco field. The device also prolongs the useful life of shade cloths by reducing the strains and wear to which such cloths are subjected. The invention will nd utility in other situations where similar problems are involved.

While I have illustrated and described what I now consider to be the preferred form of my invention, it will be understood that various alterations and modifications may be resorted to without departing from the broader scope of my invention as dened by the following claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A slide for shade cloths and the like comprising a body member in the form of a loop open at its lower edge, said body member being adapted to be placed over a wire and to support a shade cloth for sliding movement over its upper surface,

4 an arm extending downwardly from said body member, and a weight on the lower end of said arm to prevent unintentional removal of said body member from the wire during movement of the shade cloth over said body member.

2. A slide for shade cloths and the like comprising a generally tubular body member having a slot in its wall extending longitudinally thereof, said body member being adapted to be placed over a wire and to support a shade cloth for sliding movement over its upper surface, an arm secured to said body member adjacent said slot and extending downwardly therefrom, and a weight on the lower end of said arm.

3. A device for facilitating sliding movement of a web of cloth and the like over a horizontal strand comprising a generally tubular body mem-i ber having a slot in its wall extending longitudinally thereof, said body member being adapted to be placed over and along the horizontal strand and to support the web for sliding movement over its upper surface, and an arm secured to said body member adjacent said slot and extending down-A wardly therefrom to prevent rotation of said body member about the strand.

4. A device as described in claim 3 provided with a stop member extending upwardly from adjacent each end of the upper surface of said body member to restrain the web from passing over the ends of said body member.

EDWARD HODGES WADE.

No references cited. 

